Pinacoteca

I spent the afternoon at the Pinacoteca do Estado, an art gallery here in São Paulo that houses over 5,000 works, majoritarily of Brazilian artists. The building is an architectural delight with a mixture of gallery space, exposed brick walls, and sunroof-covered courtyards. It is located across the street from the Estação da Luz station and beside the Jardim da Luz, São Paulo's first botanical garden, opened in 1825. As the garden can be a bit dodgy, it's probably better to enjoy it from the comfort of the Pinacoteca's lovely terrace café.

The temporary exhibit 60 years of Photography of Flávio Damm was one of my favourites. A native of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Damm's methodology consists of finding an interesting subject background and then lying in wait for a interesting subject to walk by and complete the picture. It is almost impossible to tell just by looking at the photos in the exhibit whether they had been taken two years ago or fifty years ago. Great stuff!

The second exhibit that caught my eye was the Jardim da Luz - Seus personagens, Seu Encanto [Garden of Light - Its Personalities, Its Charm] series by Paulista Paulo Mac Dowell. This series of photos was taken in Jardim da Luz as a chronicle of the people who are there on a daily basis. From children, to families, to elderly men meeting their friends, to homeless people sleeping on benches, to office workers enjoying some sun over their lunchbreak, the series offers a terrific view into the gardens. Unfortunately it is still best to avoid the garden when alone and especially after nightfall.